- Brad Smith warned that skilled-worker restrictions could send AI engineers abroad, weakening U.S. technology competitiveness.
- Microsoft filed about 6,000 H-1B petitions last fiscal year; Smith said roughly 80% involved existing employees.
- JD Vance announced PERM sponsorship restrictions targeting Microsoft and seven other companies, citing concerns about American workers and wages.
Brad Smith warned that the Trump administration’s skilled-worker restrictions could send the next generation of AI and software engineers to Canada and the United Kingdom, weakening U.S. technology competitiveness for “over a generation.” The warning came after JD Vance announced a bar on Microsoft and seven other technology companies sponsoring foreign workers through Permanent Labor Certification (PERM).
Smith, Microsoft’s vice chair and president, spoke during the International AI Summit in Dublin. He said the United States should worry about signals that might steer highly skilled engineers elsewhere.
“I think we should all be worried about sending — intentionally or inadvertently or otherwise — signals that send the most talented next wave of AI [or] software engineers to other countries, rather than the United States.”
Smith called Vance’s claim that Microsoft abused the H-1B system “completely off base.” He said the company’s filings and hiring record did not support the administration’s account.
Microsoft says its visa filings mostly kept current employees in the country
Microsoft submitted approximately 6,000 H-1B petitions during the previous fiscal year, Smith said. About 80% covered extensions or changes of status for existing employees, rather than new recruits.
Those figures describe a substantial share of filings as efforts to keep current workers in their jobs. They do not match the administration’s portrayal of a company replacing American employees with new foreign hires, Smith argued.
He said Microsoft hired more than 9,000 U.S.-born workers in the prior year. Another report cited the company’s figure as 9,200 American workers during its last fiscal year.
Smith disputed the administration’s claim that Microsoft had replaced 6,000 laid-off American workers with 9,000 foreign workers. He also said the company generally sought green cards for long-serving employees, not new hires.
Employment-based permanent-residency backlogs can leave foreign workers in temporary status for years, Smith said. That delay, he argued, helps explain why the company files green-card applications for people already working there.
Vance says the restrictions protect American workers from lower-paid competition
Vance accused the targeted companies of using foreign-worker programs to favor lower-paid foreign labor over American employees. Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling appeared with him at the October 9 announcement about the PERM suspensions.
The affected companies include Microsoft, Adobe, Wipro, Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys and HCLTech, along with two other technology or IT-services firms. The announcement restricts their sponsorship of skilled foreign employees through the Labor Department program.
Administration supporters say tighter limits can guard U.S. workers against displacement and wage pressure. The administration’s argument centers on how companies use foreign-worker programs and whether those hires undercut American employees.
Smith’s response centers on the makeup of Microsoft’s petitions and its U.S. hiring. He has challenged the administration’s account of both, saying most petitions involved existing staff and the company hired thousands of U.S.-born workers.
Critics say the talent restrictions could also shift jobs and innovation abroad
Daniel Castro, president of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, said highly skilled workers are “an economic asset.” He argued that preventing them from staying in the United States could move their talent, jobs, tax revenue and innovation to other countries, including Canada and the United Kingdom.
Smith also warned that discouraging skilled immigrants could harm Americans’ “wealth and standard of living.” He said the consequences would reach beyond technology companies and affect the wider U.S. economy.
The dispute puts immigration limits alongside the administration’s goal of maintaining U.S. leadership in artificial intelligence. The industry relies heavily on international researchers, engineers and founders, while the new restrictions target firms seeking to sponsor skilled foreign employees.
Smith’s warning reaches beyond Microsoft’s staffing figures. He says the signals sent to engineers now could shape where the next generation builds its careers, and where their work contributes to technological competition.
